Ikuji
by Atra Imber
Summary: Naruko Uzumaki, vessel of the Kyuubi, scorned by all of Konoha. Her will is iron, but her chances slim. What happens when she finds someone willing to shape that iron will into the sharpest steel? Taijutsu!Female!Naruto
1. Birth of a Beast

Author's Note: Hello there! I hope that you all become my faithful readers! This is my first fanfic...EVER! So I really hope you enjoy it, and please...be gentle with my feelings! At least for a few chapters...

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><p><strong>Ikuji<strong>

Birth of a Beast

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><p>Naruko sat atop a wooden crate, worrying at a bone that had been her only sustenence for a week. She wore little more than rags, a tattered pair of shorts under a shapeless shirt reminescent of a burlap sack. Her eyes, a pair of brilliant crystaline blue orbs, flecked with specks of emerald green. They sat above a pair of heavy bags, the result of many sleepless nights. Sleep was hard to come by for an eight year old girl, alone in the streets. Even in a village like Konoha, which was supposedly the most friendly and caring of all the hidden villages, there was no refuge for the village pariah.<p>

Naruko sighed, a weak wind blew a lock of reddish-blonde hair into her face.

"YOSH!"

A chill shot down Naruko's spine. Never had she heard such a spine tinglingly horrifying cry in all her short life.

Living in Konoha as she did, one wonders how she had escaped the cry of Konoha's Sublime Green Beast for as long as she had.

"I WILL RUN ONE THOUSAND LAPS AROUND KONOHA! AND IF I DO NOT DO THAT, I WILL CLIMB UP AND THE HOKAGE MONUMENT ONE THOUSAND TIMES USING ONLY ONE HAND!"

Naruko's lip curled up, revealing an overly developed canine tooth, not unlike the teeth of the Inuzuka clan. "The fuck?" Being eight years old doesn't shield one from the crude language of the backstreets of Konoha. With a jerk of her jaws, she snapped her bone in half, secreting the jagged halves in either hand. She assumed a defensive posture, making herself as small and unassuming as possible.

Being small and unassuming was no defense against the ever youthful eyes of Maito Gai.

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><p>Maito Gai was a complex man. Able to alternate rapidly between outbursts of borderline maniacal exuberance, and somber, almost sagelike contemplation. On the surface, he appeared a somewhat dimwitted, if undeniably talented shinobi. Beneath it all...<p>

Well, there was a reason his rival was the infamous Sharingan Kakashi.

So when he came across the vessel of the Kyuubi no Kitsune crouching on top of a crate in one of the worst parts of Konoha, desperately attempting to make him think that she was not there, that she was not a threat to him, that she did not, in any way shape or form, exist, he felt compelled to show her that he saw her, and that he was not afraid of her.

"Yosh! Good day to you miss! How are you this fine day?" His greeting was _most_ youthful, and he inwardly smirked as the small bundle of rags and spindly limbs that was Naruko Uzumaki shuddered as his _most_ youthful greeting washed over her.

The girl shifted, and Gai was acutely aware of the sharp bits of bone she held clenched in her small fists. "Get fucked freak."

Gai flashed a _most_ youthful grin at the girl, "Such language is most unyouthful miss...?" He left it hanging, hoping that the girl would volunteer her name. He knew it of course. He made it his business to know as much as possible.

Knowledge was _most_ youthful.

"Miss Noneya."

Gai grinned widely, he knew this joke well, he figured he would humor her. "Noneya?"

"Noneya fuckin' business." Her eyes locked on his, "Fuckin' eyebrows."

Gai took offense to that one. He was rather proud of his eyebrows. "There's no need for such language miss. I'll give you my name, if you give me yours. That's how things work here right? Give and take?"

The blue eyes narrowed, "Not always. Seen some shit. Kids...my age. fuckin' taken away from what little bits of home they had...sold off to god knows where. All because they accepted bread from the wrong goddamned asshole. I don't do that. I steal what I need...never enough though. Naruko. Naruko Uzumaki. At your fuckin' service. You gonna try and fuck me over? Last prick got a fuckin' rock jammed into his eye."

Gai nodded sagely, that explained what happened to Komasu-san. Gai would reprimand the Chunin personally. Likely in a very painful manner. Regardless. Time to turn up the youth. "YOSH! I AM MOST PLEASED TO MEET YOU NARUKO-CHAN! PEOPLE CALL ME KONOHA'S NOBLE GENTLEMAN! I AM THE SUBLIME GREEN BEAST! MAITO GAI!"

He held out his hand, his thumb pointed towards the heavens, the sun glinting off his obnoxiously wide smile.

Naruko blinked owlishly, her lip curling again, "Fuckin' freak."

Gai only grinned, "Perhaps. Are you hungry Naruko-chan? My treat."

Naruko backed as far away from Gai as she could get without falling off her crate. "No thanks. I don't need your handouts. Fuckin' freak."

Gai stepped forward, his hand outstretched. He knew what would come next. He was prepared. The spindly arm of Naruko Uzumaki darted out, and even as she sunk the jagged spar of bone into his forearm, he could not help but marvel at the natural speed the small child possessed. Unflinching, even as the bone sunk into his flesh, Gai pulled the girl closer to him. Her eyes were wide with panic.

"No, go away, lemme alone you fuckin' freak! LEMME ALONE!" Her other hand snapped forward, driving the second jagged bone into his arm again and again. Gai had felt worse pain. He would manage. His arms wrapped around the child, and he soothingly stroked her hair. He could feel her heart beating like a rabbit hopped up on cocaine.

"W-what the f-fuck man..." Naruko was paralyzed with terror. Never had anyone, man, woman, or child had ever touched her in a friendly manner, much less given her a _hug._

Gai released her, a wide grin on his face, despite the shredded meat that was his arm. "So, Naruko-chan, are you hungry?"

Naruko felt a flush creep up onto her face, "Y-yes. Fuckin' freak."

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><p>Naruko was not a trusting person. Her rough and tumble life had taught her to err on the side of caution, as more often than not, the person smiling at you wanted nothing more than to harm you in the most horrible ways they can imagine. So after eating with Gai, she quietly excused herself, and made her way back to her favorite resting spot.<p>

When she arrived, she discovered a backpack full of simple clothes and hygiene necessities, a box full of canned food and assorted junk food, and a frog-shaped wallet full of money.

For the first time in her life, her tears were from happiness.

She stuffed all the food she could into the backpack, and ate what didn't fit, tucking the wallet safely away in the the recesses of her new jacket, Naruko slept soundly.

When she awoke, she returned to the crate where she had met Gai the day before, and waited.

Thankfully, she did not have to wait for long, the green clad man ran at a steady pace, his bright smile growing wider when he spied the small girl perched atop her crate. The man increased his pace, and stopped before the girl.

"Ah, Naruko-chan, I see that you found my present! I must say, orange suits you!"

Naruko felt her lip curl up, but in a completely foreign way. The smile spread across her face, showing off her impressive teeth quite well. "What's up Gai-san?" Gai's smile was infectious. She hoped his _crazy_ was not contagious.

Gai crossed his arms, suddenly serious. "Naruko-chan, have you ever thought about becoming a shinobi?"

The girl bit her lip, unintentionally drawing blood. "Well, yeah, but everyone hates my guts. So I would never even get into the academy, though I should have started this year. Isn't my life fuckin' grand?"

Gai's expression hardened, then softened as he smiled, "I don't hate you Naruko-chan. I will get you into the academy at the start of next year's term. Until then, you are more than welcome to train with me."

Her eyes narrowed. "You're like, totally shittin' me, right?"

"Not at all! That would be _most_ unyouthful!"

"Tch. Whatever you say Gai-san." The girl stood up and stretched her back. "So, what are we doing?"

Gai smiled his blinding smile, "We are running five hundred laps around the village! And if we cannot do that, we will walk one thousand laps around the village on our hands!"

The girl's smile fell, but Gai saw that burning determination in her eyes, that stubborn refusal to let anything get the better of her. "And if we can't do that, we shall do two thousand lunging laps around the village."

Gai smiled again, he wondered if this is what a Jonin Sensei felt like.

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><p>Author's Note: Well...this is the end of chapter one of Ikuji, which means Guts in Japanese. I figured it would be appropriate. Ok...long note. Gonna explain some backstory...<p>

This Naruko...is a bit jaded. She grew up in the back alleys of Konoha, exposed to the seedier elements of the village. As a result, she had some deep rooted trust issues. The only person she trusts at this time is Gai, and that's mostly because he simply accepted her for who she is, and how she is.

This is because I think that, to put it simply, Gai is a genuinely kind person.

So um...I want to know what you guys want. There are three options:

A) Gai gets Naruko into the academy, and acts as her sponsor, allowing her to graduate early and get tacked onto Team Gai. She could either replace one of the team, which is up to you, or be tacked on as an additional member.

Or

B) Naruko goes into Team Seven.

Or

C) Naruko doesn't go into either team, and instead gets an apprenticeship with Gai, while he remains Jonin sensei of Team Gai

And...If you have any ideas for pairings, please, feel free to let me know. I'm open to yuri suggestions as well as hetero suggestions. But...no yaoi will ever be in my stories...I'm not a yaoi fangirl.

Anways! THANKS FOR READING! PLEASE REVIEW AND LET ME KNOW YOUR OPINIONS!


	2. Scars

Author's Note: So...Option C is winning by a landslide. Which is just fine with this one! Because that was my preference anyways! Yes yes! I need more votes for pairings! Although, I notice that you guys _really_ like yuri, which is fine too! Oh...little warning, this chapter has a lot of foul language.

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><p><strong>Ikuji<strong>

Scars

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><p>"Yosh! Naru-chan! FEEL THE BURN OF YOUTH!" Gai supported all his weight on his index fingers, and held a boulder much larger than himself to his feet with chakra.<p>

Naruko was occupied punching a training post. She bit her lip, and pushed through the pain of her torn knuckles. "Burn of youth. One-thousand-nine-hundred-nintey-eight. Right. One-thousand-nine-hundred-nintey-nine. More like burn of my shredded hands. Two-thousand. Fuckin' eyebrows."

Naruko, now age eleven, had been training with Gai for the past three years, and while she had toughened up considerably, pounding away at a log of wood for upwards of eight hours would tear the skin off of even Gai's iron-tough hands.

Between his declarations of youth, Gai had given her numerous opportunities to rest, and move onto a less painful exercise.

She had answered with a stony glare, and Gai flashed his _most_ youthful smile, and returned to his own exercise.

She paused, stretching out her arms, the muscles were stiff and sore. She knew she would be back to one hundred percent after a good nights rest. She always was, even after training so grueling that it left _Gai_ sore for a few days. Gai had called her a prodigy of hard work, but said that her impressive recovery rate allowed her to push herself farther than anyone else could ever go. She had allowed herself a rare smile at that complement.

She sighed, and resumed her pummeling of the post. "Two-thousand-and-one. Two-thousand-and-two."

A resounding thump filled the training ground as Gai dropped his boulders. "Naruko-chan. Stop. I have something I need to tell you."

Naruko felt her lip curl up. "Fuckin' hell. Can it wait? Three thousand straight punches, or I've got to do five thousand palm strikes. You know how much I hate fuckin' palm strikes."

She glanced at Gai, and saw that he wasn't smiling. He was stoic.

"Oh fuck. What is it?" Naruko held out her hands, and Gai gingerly began wrapping them in bandages. While they would heal overnight, it was still best to keep them wrapped.

"I've been assigned a team."

In five words, Naruko felt her world shatter.

Not letting him continue, she turned away and fled.

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><p>"Fuck. Fuckin' bastard. Fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck!" Tears streamed down Naruko's face. "Three years. Three <em>goddamned fucking years<em>. I trusted you you fuck! Now...now you're just gonna fuckin'..."

_You're just garbage Naru-chan. Nobody will ever really care for you._

"Like garbage. Toss me aside like garbage. Cause now you've got some _real_ fuckin' genin to train. Now your fuckin' friends won't give you shitty looks like they did when I'm around, right? Fuckin' eyebrows." Naruko pulled at the arm warmers she wore. Orange. He said she looked good in orange. She tore them off, baring the weight rings she wore on her arms. A vibrant orange bandana adorned her head, and that too was torn off, leaving her red-gold hair wild and free.

_Not like I care for you Naru-chan. You're garbage. But you're _my_ garbage. My precious little piece of trash._

Naruko grabbed her hair and screamed. A raw thing, full of despair and rage. She reached down and tore the leg warmers off, baring the weights that looked far lighter than they actually were.

Her throat felt raw, her mouth tasted like metal. "I fuckin's _trusted _ you you fuckin' freak!" She screamed again, and her fist found a wall and a resounding crack filled the air.

She looked at her hand, at the jagged bits of bone that protruded from her skin. "Tch. Fuckin' shit." She looked at the wall, and whistled softly at the state of it. It had cratered where her fist had struck, and cracks radiated from the impact point. "Fuckin' eyebrows would be impressed."

_You're worthless to everyone Naru-chan. Everyone but me._

As she slumped down agains the wall, Naruko couldn't help but remember. Her words. But she left too.

"I guess I really am worthless. Even to you Mistress." Sighing, she pressed her thumb against her canine tooth, and was satisfied when it came away bloody. "I guess...if I'm worthless...what's the point. Right Mistress?"

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><p>Gai ran through the village at top speed, his eyes darting in every direction. He needed to find Naruko. She had fled before he could explain the situation.<p>

As if he would let his beloved pupil fall to the wayside just because he was assigned a genin team. He had been assigned a team, despite Naruko being considered his unofficial apprentice, because the Hokage felt that he was one of the few jonin that had the energy to train a team of genin, and still be able to have another student on the side.

He couldn't find her, and he was rapidly growing frantic.

The girl had improved in the past three years, but whatever had happened to her in the past, she had still not recovered from it.

With the incomplete information she had, and her cynical view of the world, Gai feared her thoughts would turn towards darker things. After all...

She had tried to kill herself once before.

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><p>"S-stop!"<p>

Naruko flicked her eyes up from her wrist, a hairsbreadth away from sinking her teeth into the flesh.

Dark blue hair, pale lavender eyes, pale skin. A Hyuuga then, and with no mark on her forehead, it was a main house Hyuuga. "Fuck off princess. Noneya fuckin' business."

Naruko returned to her task, and raised her wrist to her mouth.

'S-stop! P-please, stop. Y-you don't need to d-do that!" The girl looked at her with wide eyes, her hands held up, reaching, longing, an invitation of comfort perhaps? Naruko snorted and let her arm drop to the ground. She tilted her head back and looked up towards the sky.

"Fuck do you care. I'm trash. I'm worthless. Why should I exist. The entire fuckin' village hates me. My _sensei_ of three fuckin' years is gonna up and fuckin' dump me because he's gettin' new fuckin' students." She could feel the tears coming again. She didn't want to cry in front of this spoiled little shit. But she couldn't bring herself to care.

"..."

"Yeah, see? No fuckin' answer. So go fuck off back to your cushy little life you fuckin' bitch. Let me end mine how I fuckin' feel like."

"N-no! You c-can't!" Her face was bright red, and her eyes were wide. She looked like she was about to faint.

"THE FUCK NOT?" Naruko leapt to her feet and glared at the Hyuuga girl.

The girl looked at her feet, "Y-you broke my w-window when you s-s-screamed. Y-you need to f-fix it."

Naruko's lip curled up. "The fuck. So I fix your fuckin' window and you'll leave me the fuck alone?"

The girl nodded, "Y-yes."

Naruko's curled lip turned into a full sneer, revealing her sharp teeth, that almost tore into her veins moments ago. "Fine, fuck. Take me there. I'll fuckin' fix it."

The girl nodded, and began to walk. Naruko easily fell into step next to her.

"The fuck is your name?"

"H-Hinata..."

"Naruko Uzumaki, at your fuckin' service."

They walked in silence. For far longer than should have taken. Naruko felt a smile tug at her mouth. This girl...

"W-we're here."

"Right, so where's this window?" The girl nodded and began walking through the estate her family owned. Naruko was fairly baffled. She had asked a straight question. Where was the fuck? She had wanted to throw a fuck in there.

"W-wait here." Naruko was startled back into focus by Hinta's soft voice. The girl was standing before the door that presumably led to her room. Naruko nodded. Hinata slipped into her room and closed the door.

Naruko could have sworn she heard glass breaking.

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><p>Author's Note: Well...there's chapter two! Please! Review! Let me know what you think, tell me what pairings you want to see!<p>

Just so you know, no pairings are concrete yet, Naruko might get friendly with someone you voted for, she might hate their guts at this point in the story, but opinions change, right?

I've decided that for most chapters, I'll ask my faithful readers to decide which path to take!

For next chapter, shall we:

A) Continue the story of this chapter? With Gai looking for Naruko, and Hinata trying to get Naruko to open up and not be all suicidal?

Or

B) Explore Naruko's painful past? Particularly this "Mistress" she was talking about?

Or

C) Shall we skip ahead a year, and see the interactions between Team Gai and Naruko, and Naruko's interactions with Hinata?

And more pairing suggestions! Pleaaaaaaase!


	3. Trust

Author's Note: I was told by someone who's been writing for far longer than I have, that I fell into "novice overangsting." If anyone else noticed that, I'm very sorry, I'll try to do better.

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><p><strong>Ikuji<strong>

Trust

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><p>Naruko sat on Hinata's bed, sipping at the tea that her host had provided. She knew the etiquette she was expected to follow, after all, Gai had taught her well in very, in many different fields. Not that she adhered to the etiquette, she knew it, that was enough for her.<p>

She looked at the blue-haired girl that knelt on the floor in front of her, pouring herself a small cup of tea.

"Why'd you stop me?" Naruko winced at the tone of her own voice, and was still confused as to where her customary "fuck" had gone.

Hinata wouldn't meet her eyes, "Y-you need to f-fix my window."

"Riiiight." Her eyes roamed the room, it was sparsely decorated, with only a few small plants, and a picture of her family on her nightstand. "So I fix your window...what then? You find something else for me to fix?"

The girl was silent, but she nodded, a slight, nearly imperceptible thing.

"Why?" The blonde's eyes were half-lidded, her moment of crisis placed aside for the moment, she settled into a languid state of calm. She felt remarkable clarity.

"...y-you never...g-gave up."

Naruko shrugged. "Sure I have. You just saw me giving up."

"No! I admired you! Everyone treated you so badly...but...y-you never gave up. You were strong. I-if you could be strong...so can I." The Hyuuga's face grew red, and she looked intently at the floor, as if hoping that it would swallow her up.

"...you shouldn't admire me...I'm not someone worth admiring." She looked out the broken window.

_Naru-chan. You love me, don't you?_

"But you are!" Hinata sprang to her feet and grabbed Naruko's shoulders. "You are worth admiring! Y-you are w-worth it...to me...a-at least." The girl started strong, but trailed off at the end.

_Me and no other?_

"M-maybe...Hey, Hinata...you don't need me to fix your window do you?"

The girl stepped back, a puzzled look on her face.

_Because I love you Naru-chan. Even if you're worthless. You're mine._

"You need me to...be strong. Because...you need to believe in...someone."

Hinata fidgeted under the gaze of Naruko's bright blue eyes.

_Only mine._

"You want to...believe in me." Naruko reached out and took Hinata's hand. "I don't believe in myself. So...that's your job. Alright?"

_Mine._

Hinata's eyes were so wide that Naruko thought her pale eyes were going to explode out of her face. "Y-yes!"

"Don't let me down Hinata-chan...that would really fuck me up." Inside, Naruko rejoiced, the "fucks" were back, normality had been achieved.

"I...I won't!"

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><p>"Nezumi-san! Have you found her?"<p>

The mouse masked ANBU nodded, "She's in the Hyuuga compound, she entered about an hour ago with the elder daughter of Hiashi. Hinata, I think her name is. Ah, Naruko removed some of her clothing. No, nothing too 'unyouthful,' just her leg and arm warmers and her bandana. I gathered them for you. By all means, go collect your student."

Gai held Naruko's discarded arm warmers in his hand. He had given them to her when she completed her first one handed climb up the Hokage monument. The leg warmers had been as a gift after the girl had run laps around Konoha, nonstop, for a week. The bandana was simply because she was his beloved student.

The man nodded, "Thank you Nezumi-san. I'll make sure you're rewarded for your aid."

The ANBU shook her head. "After what She put her through...I owe Naruko. I don't need a reward. I hope you can work everything out."

"I'm sure everything will work out Nezumi-san."

The ANBU shrugged, "You're always optimistic. Good for you."

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><p>"No."<p>

"N-Naruko-chan...I need to g-get up. S-someone is knocking on m-my door."

"Don't care."

"P-please?"

"No. They can fuck off. I'm comfortable."

Naruko's left arm was draped over Hinata, her leg twined through hers, and her head nestled in the crook of Hinata's neck. The poor Hyuuga was bright red, and the room was spinning. She understood that Naruko meant nothing by it, that she was simply trying to rest, and that she was the sort of girl that needed a "teddy bear." While she was, to some degree, happy that she was serving as Naruko's teddy, she was also concerned with what her father would think if he saw her like this. After all, Naruko's right hand had slipped under Hinata's shirt, and under her back.

"Naruko..."

"YOSH! I HAVE COME TO COLLECT MY BELOVED AND ADORABLE PUPIL! PERHAPS YOU HAVE SEEN HER? SHE IS _MOST_ YOUTHFUL! WITH A HEAD OF BRIGHT YELLOW HAIR AND EYES BLUER THAN THE SKY!"

Naruko buried her face further into Hinata's neck. "Don't open the door Hinata. I'll bite you."

"I-" The door exploded inward, chunks of wood smashing the remnants of Hinata's window and scattering throughout the room.

"YOSH! I HAVE COME FO-" Gai froze, his arms held in front of him in bizarre angles. "Wh-what is this unyouthful sight before me?"

Hinata grew more pale, "Th-this...I mean...Uh-"

"MY _MOST_ YOUTHFUL AND BELOVED STUDENT ISN'T WEARING HER TRAINING WEIGHTS!"

"Tch. Well yeah, they'd crush Hinata-chan. I'm needy, not fuckin' stupid."

"OH! YOSH! HOW THOUGHTFUL NARUKO-CHAN! IT IS _MOST_ YOUTHFUL TO BE CONSIDERATE OF YOUR FRIENDS!"

"Now go away, fuckin' eyebrows, I'm trying to sleep."

Gai smiled at Naruko's reluctance to relinquish her hold on Hinata, but this discussion had waited for too long. "Naruko-chan. Forgive me. THIS IS THE FIST OF LOVE!" Immediately, Naruko leapt away from Hinata and attempted to avoid Gai's fist, to no avail.

Her nose well and broken, Naruko sat on the floor, looking up at Gai as he cast a stern gaze on her.

"Fuck your fist of love. Just...just fuck it."

"Such language is unbecoming of a young lady Naruko-chan. Are you ready to listen to me now?"

Naruko shook her head and beckoned to Hinata, who came to her without question, and at Naruko's behest, sat behind her. "Hinata-chan, do your sempai a favor...brush my hair." Hinata looked confused, but began running her fingers through Naruko's red-gold locks. The bewiskered jinchuuriki had become languid again, and nodded at Gai.

"I have been assigned a genin team. Why did that upset you?"

The girl stiffened, and Hinata made a soothing noise. "You're gonna toss me aside. I'm old news."

"I would never do that. It would be _most_ unyouthful."

She looked down, "But...you have to...right?"

Gai shook his head, "I would never cast you aside."

"Am I on your new team?" A tone of eagerness crept into her voice.

"No."

"Oh."

"You are separate from them. But you won't be. They are my genin. You are my pupil. We will train together. I will not cast you aside, and I will not deny them. I will care for you, like I have done, and I will teach them, as is my duty."

Her voice was quiet, "Is that the youthful thing to do?"

Gai grinned. "It is the _most_ youthful thing to do!"

_Nobody cares about you but me._

"Alright then. Gai-sensei...Hinata-chan. I will try to be strong...I will be..._most_ youthful. Because...you both care about me...and I can't let you down."

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><p>Author's Note: PHEW! I'm glad that chapter is done. Hope it wasn't too angsty!<p>

There's a few things I'm sure you all are wondering. The italics saying the things about how _nobody loves Naruko_, is Naruko remembering things that the "Mistress" said to her.

Naruko latched onto Hinata so fast because, despite her bravado and roughness, she is _needy_. She _craves_ attention, she _craves_ love, she _needs_ someone to believe in her. And Hinata needs someone to believe in.

Nooooooww! Decision time!

A) Keep going at the present time, introduce Naruko to Team Gai and one of the future Rookie Nine, which one is up to you.

or

B) Explore Naruko's past

or

C) Skip ahead a year: Naruko has met Team Gai and has grown used to them (doesn't mean she likes them), and Naruko gets her first mission.

Make your choices! And more pairing suggestions!

* * *

><p>BONUS DECISION!<p>

I want to have a second story going, along with this! You get to choose! I'll put this bonus decision at the end of the next few chapters, so people get plenty of time to choose.

A)** Shinri:** Naruto Uzumaki is born without the ability to use chakra, without the ability to turn himself into a juggernaut of physical skill. However, he is blessed with a ferocious intellect and unwavering resolve. He cannot be a shinobi, but can he still become a hero? Normal!Intelligent!Naruto

B)** Eiyo:** Shinobi are assassins, murderers. They strike from the darkness, unseen, unfeeling, terrible weapons of death. Naruto Uzumaki despises them. He will not be a murderer, he will not strike unseen, he cannot be an unfeeling tool. He is Naruto Uzumaki, and he walks the path of honor. Honorable!Kenjutsu!Naruto

C)** Shinuki:** The Will of Fire, the ideal of Konoha, the legacy of the Senju clan, and far more than it appears. When he steals the Forbidden Scroll, he also takes an ornate ring that, when combined with knowledge from the scroll, draws out a great power from within. Takes some elements from another manga, can't say, or it'll be spoilers!

D) **Kimyō:** The supernatural exists, and Naruko Uzumaki knows it well. But before he can help anyone else deal with it, he needs to save himself. Narutoverse with aspects of the Bakemonogatari series.

D1) **Kimyō:** The supernatural exists, and Naruko Uzumaki knows it well. But before he can help anyone else deal with it, he needs to save himself. More modern Naruverse, less ninjaish and more psychological story. Of course, still gonna have cool fight scenes. Over all, same concept as option (D), just with less Ninja-centric plot.


	4. Roar of the Beast Part 1

Author's Note: Option A it is! Wow! This chapter turned out longer than I thought it would! Breaking it into two parts!

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><p><strong>Ikuji<strong>

Roar of the Beast: Part 1

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><p>It had been two weeks since Naruko had met Hinata, and she had since recovered from her breakdown. She had even gotten Hinata to join her and Gai in some of their insane and strenuous training sessions, and had even been training solely with Hinata from time to time. As skilled at taijutsu as she was, Naruko picked up the basic principles of the Jyuuken, and was eager to learn more. That would have to wait though.<p>

Today Gai got his team.

She had asked him about the test that most jonin sensei gave their new teams, to find out if they were worth training, and was pleased to find that her thoughts on it were spot on. It was about teamwork. Then she had asked Gai if _she_ could be the test. For a while, he refused, but once she had explained that she could test both her youthful flames, and the youthfullness of his new students, as well as allow him to get a decent idea of their respective skills...

And thus, Naruko found herself waiting in a tree, listening intently for the sound of Gai and his new team approaching.

No Lotus, no removing the weights.

No problem.

Gai was well ahead of his new genin, so there was no chance that he would get in the way.

When the three were directly below her, she struck.

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><p>Neji was confused. It was an unfamiliar, and unpleasant feeling.<p>

His mind registered the sight before him in a disjointed fashion. Flashes of information, seared into his brain.

Waist length hair, golden, gleaming strands of red, like blood, held back with a vibrant orange bandanna.

Brilliant blue eyes, like the sky, flecked with forest green.

Wide smile, almost feral, elongated canines. Mouth framed with three whisker-like markings on each cheek.

Orange vest, worn open. No shirt, only a stylized black and orange sarashi wrapped tightly around the chest.

Orange arm warmers covering arm and hand wraps that matched the sarashi.

Black shorts that ended at the knee, tight enough to not be a liability, but loose enough to allow for free range of motion.

Orange leg warmers over leg wraps that, again, match the sarashi.

Oddly, no shoes, only more of the stylized black an orange wraps.

Oh, and of course, a fist buried in his stomach, and a foot planted on each of his teammates.

He felt like he had been hit by a brick wall.

As they were flung away from the girl, She landed on her unoccupied hand, and gracefully sprung into a standing position.

"C'mon you fuckin' wussies. Naruko-chan wants a work out."

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><p>The Hyuuga recovered first, and fell into a practiced Jyuuken stance, the most basic, Naruko had seen Hinata practicing with it. The Hyuuga moved forward with fluid grace, and his arm flashed out with the singular purpose of felling her in one move. She couldn't comprehend how impossibly slow he seemed, but then again, she was used to trying to track <em>Gai's<em> movements, anything else would seem slow she supposed.

Crossing her arms, she took the blow on her wrist waits, wincing as some of the chakra from Neji's Jyuuken strike tore into her arms regardless. Her arms out of the fight for a short time, Naruko began using kicks, seemingly defying gravity as she launched a continuous barrage against the Hyuuga's failing guard.

"C'mon fuckin' pretty boy, do better!" As she said that, the boy caught her left leg, and held his hand ready to disable the tenketsu in her calf. "Not a chance!" Using his hold as a pivot, she brought herself above him, and, disregarding the damage to her arm, reared back her fist. "**Reigekiha Ouda**!" Likely seeing the potential in the strike with his Byakugan, Neji released her and fled, allowing her fist to carry straight into the ground.

Based on the principles of the Jyuuken, the Soul Crushing Strike released a large quantity of focused chakra at the moment of impact. While it was nowhere near as refined and precise as any Jyuuken attack, it was powerful, and immensely destructive.

As the crater in the ground would attest.

Her eyes flicked up, resting on Neji for a moment.

Then she vanished.

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><p>Lee was confused. First this orange clad blonde girl had appeared from nowhere, and made easy work of splitting them up. Then, she engaged Neji, and seemingly had little difficulty matching, if not outdoing the Rookie of the Year. All that he understood, no matter how skilled you were, there was always someone better.<p>

What confused him was his burning desire to fight this girl himself. While he debated his decision, the girl made the choice for him, appearing before him, her feet a blur, strain visible on her face.

Neji was a prodigy, everything came naturally to him. So, he did not put the same effort into things that Lee did. While Neji was more concerned with defeating his opponent, Lee actually took an assessment of her.

Overwhelming striking power, at least from her fists, great striking speed with her legs, as well as a well balanced fluidity. She had not exclusively trained her legs, or her arms. However, that movement technique, that was in all likelihood not the shunshin, basic or otherwise, put significant strain on her legs. The technique she had used on Neji, that Soul Crushing Strike, had put even greater strain on her arm, as Lee could see blood staining the orange arm warmer on her right wrist.

If he was smart about it, he figured he had a decent chance of winning. Even more so if he coordinated his attacks with Tenten, who he knew was already in position in one of the trees around him. Sadly, he thought, a coordinated attack with Neji is highly unlikely.

The girl's fist flew towards him, and he blocked it with crossed arms, biting back the cry of pain from the sheer force of the strike. For her size, and taking into consideration that the strike was likely not enhanced by chakra, she should not have been able to hit that hard. So he figured that she wore weights on her wrists. A good training technique, one that he resolved to copy at a later time.

And if she wore them on her wrists...

Her leg came around, and Lee leaned backwards, his foot flying up as he fell into a backwards flip, catching the girl on the chin. As she lifted off the ground, Lee's hands darted up and grabbed her ankle, confirming his suspicion that she was wearing ankle weights as well. Satisfied, he swung her overhead, and sent her crashing into a tree.

Lee was no prodigy like Neji, so he never underestimated his opponents, and took every possible advantage he could find. Tactical logic his Academy instructors had called it, and it was one of the main reasons that a boy without the ability to utilize his chakra had been able to graduate.

He would not relinquish his advantage, no matter how temporary. Pressing his attack, he was dimly aware of Tenten supporting him from range with kunai and shuriken. He had no doubts about Tenten's accuracy, so he knew he didn't need to worry about being struck. He only had to worry about defeating the girl before him.

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><p>Naruko was pumped. The Hyuuga had been able to injure her a little, but her Soul Crushing Strike and subsequent <strong>Shinshutsu<strong> foot technique had done more damage than he had. Gai had warned her not to use her foot techiques when she wore her weights, particularly the Step Forward, but she would manage. The other boy though...like the Hyuuga, he clearly specialized in taijutsu, if his gi was any indication, but he was far more observant than the one who had the supposedly "all seeing eyes." He kept away from her uninjured arm as best as possible, kept her feet tied up with ranged support from the girl in the trees, and pressed the attack on her wounded right arm, careful avoiding striking at her wrist, where her weights would have caused him more damage than he could do to her.

She was satisfied that these two passed the test, falling into an easy synchronization that spoke of impeccable teamwork in the future. She didn't expect the Hyuuga to fall into his position, and help form the well oiled machine that Team Gai could be.

Which is why she was so surprised when the Jyuuken strike caught her in the base of her neck, disabling a single tenketsu and pressing a nerve cluster that dropped her like a pile of limp noodles.

Even as her head slammed into the ground, she couldn't keep the smile off her face.

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><p>Neji, Lee, and Tenten sat at the table Gai had gotten them at the barbeque restaurant, watching intently as Gai set the broken bones in the blonde girl's right arm and hand. As they had walked here, he had admonished his student for using an untested technique against an opponent, while simultaneously praising her for devising it over the course of two weeks. Truly, he declared, his adorable student was a <em>most<em> youthful taijutsu master in the making.

Tenten watched in awe as a bruise on the blonde's face, no doubt from one of Lee's powerful punches, faded before their eyes. Before she could stop herself, she asked the question that was no doubt on Lee and Neji's mind as well, "Who the _hell_ are you?"

Naruko turned her head towards Tenten and sprang to her feet, placing one on the table, knocking over several dishes in the process. "Some call me Konoha's Beautiful Maiden! I am the Radiant Orange Beast of Konoha! Naruko-Uzumaki!" Neji looked upon the spectacle with unbridled horror, Lee with unrestrained awe, and Tenten simple cringed and chuckled. It was the same introduction that Gai had given them, just a few decibels quieter. The girl sat down and flexed her right hand, which had been broken not minutes earlier, and looked towards Gai. "There, I fuckin' did it, you owe me my fill of Ichiraku's."

Gai laughed heartily, "Did you enjoy it Naruko-chan?"

The girl grumbled, and conceded that it was kinda fun. In a "fuckin' obnoxious way."

The girl shot up as the bell attached to the front door of the restaurant dinged, and began frantically waving her hand. "Hina-chan! Fuckin' over here!" Tenten winced again, embarrassed for Naruko's foul language, because the girl clearly wouldn't be embarrassed for her own sake. The girl slid into the booth next to Naruko, and promptly began examining the blonde for injuries that Gai had already tended to, most of which were already healed. Only after she was satisfied that Naruko wasn't bleeding internally did she notice that Neji was staring at her with wide eyes, full of unbridled hate.

Naruko called him on it, "Oi, fuckface. You got a problem with Hina-chan? If you do, fuckin' say it, and then you've got to deal with me. Nobody's allowed to be an assface to my cute junior but _me_, and I already kicked your ass, so fuckin' watch yourself. Get it?"

Neji tore his gaze from Hinata, and locked eyes with Naruko. The blonde flicked a slab of barbequed pork at his face, and guffawed at the smacking sound it made as it connected.

Neji looked back towards Hinata, the slab of meat still on his face. "Hinata-sama. One day, I will kill this girl."

Hinata gasped, and Naruko's laughter only increased.

"Just thought I'd let you know."

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><p>Author's Note: NYAHAHAHA~<p>

If anyone recognized what the Soul Crushing Strike and the Step Forward are from, I give you kudos. Next chapter is gonna skip ahead a year, and you're gonna see the results of a year's worth of training with Gai, Team Gai, and Hinata.

I made Lee more thoughtful than he appears in canon, I think, but considering that he graduated from the Academy with ONLY taijutsu, I figured I might as well give him a cool reason. He's no genius, but he's observant, and when it comes to fighting, he's always trying to find a way to get the upper hand.

As for Neji, I think I gave him a bit more of a personality, just by tossing in a dash of flat humor.

Naruko and Hinata have a Senpai-kohai relationship right now, and while Hinata will call Naruko "-sempai" occasionally, I prefer Naruto saying "cute junior," cause I'm weird like that.

Hope next chapter is epic!


	5. Roar of the Beast Part 2

Author's Note: I wrote most of this chapter in a Starbucks cafe while my boyfriend argued about the structure of the universe with an eight year old that was surprisingly well read. Only in Humboldt County people *sigh*

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><p><strong>Ikuji<strong>

Roar of the Beast: Part 2

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><p>Team assignment day. Naruko knew what would happen with her, she was already on the record as Gai's apprentice, and would remain so, even while the rest of her class was sorted into teams. She had only chosen to grace them with her presence because of Hinata, the meek girl having begged her to come.<p>

She had sworn not to use foul language on this day, on pain of not getting her hair brushed. Her hair had grown over the past year, and was now well past her waist. It required daily brushing or it turned into a tangled mess from which Naruko felt there was no escape.

Plus she just really liked it when Hinata brushed her hair.

"Team Eight is Hinata Hyuuga, Shino Aburame, and Kiba Inuzuka."

Naruko looked at Hinata's new teammates. Shino was, as always, unreadable, though she imagined he seemed satisfied with the assignment. Kiba however, was looking towards Hinata with a growing expression of perverseness.

Naruko would show him who was dominant at the first opportunity.

But not today. Because today she would behave.

"Team Nine is still active from last year, so, Team Ten is Ino Yamanaka, Shikamaru Nara, and Choji Akimichi. And that's it. Congratulations, you've all moved into your official careers as shinobi of Konoh-Yes Sakura? You have a question?" The pink haired girl's hand had shot up.

"Yes Iruka-sensei. What about Naruko? I didn't hear you call her name. From what I understand, she would be assigned to Team Seven, with Sasuke-kun and I, because he's the best in the class, and she has the lowest scores."

Hinta stiffened. 'Oh,' she thought to herself, 'This is what having intent to kill feels like.'

Iruka shook his head, "In any other situation you'd be correct. But Naruko already has a jonin sensei, and has had one since before she entered the academy. Her scores are low not because she is a poor student, but because her sensei was more concerned with training her that he was in her academic pursuits." Murmurs rippled through the room, being exclusively chosen by a jonin as their apprentice was highly uncommon, though not unheard of. It also spoke highly of Naruko's skill, despite her poor scores.

Hinata beamed as the opinions of Naruko shifted towards a more positive light. Naruko simply yawned, for she did not give a single shit about what her classmates thought of her.

Just look at all the shits she doesn't give.

One by one, jonin sensei filtered into the room and collected their genin. When Kurenai Yuhi arrived to collect Hinata, Naruko moved to follow, only to be stopped the Sasuke.

His black eyes were haunted, and for a moment they seemed pleading. But only for a moment.

"A-ah, Naruko-chan..."

The blond waved her hand, "I'll catch up Hina-chan. Do I still need to be polite when you're not around?"

Hinata chewed her lip for a moment, and nodded.

"Fiiine. But you're gonna do shampoo too then."

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><p>"What do you need Uchiha-san?"<p>

Sasuke remained silent, his black eyes locked on Naruko's.

Sakura sat nervously, exchanging glances with her teammate, a red eyed girl called Suko. Neither of them saw this ending well.

"I asked you a question."

"Why did you get chosen by a jonin? What makes us different. What makes you better than I am."

"I fought for everything I have today. Nothing was given to me. Everything I have...all the skill I have...the people in my life...I earned them. Unlike you. Your whole life, everything has been handed to you." Naruko held her hands at her sides, they ached to strike the Uchiha. "Even now, even as I speak, you're probably thinking that it's only _natural_ that I had to fight for everything, because I'm inferior to you. Well guess what buddy, this _inferior_ person can whoop your pompous rear all the way to Kumo. Because I _earned it_. You want to be arrogant? Earn that right. Until then, you're just like everyone else."

"I am _not_ like _anyone_ else!"

Naruko shook her head. "You are one person out of the countless people in this world. Sorry to break it to you, but you are enormously insignificant. Just like the rest of us."

"Fight me."

Naruko grinned, "Excuse me?"

"Fight me. I'll show you how _insignificant_ I am."

"Tch. You're not even significant enough to brush my hair."

"I am an _Uchiha!_"

"I don't _care_. The council might bend over backwards for you, but _I will not_. So get over it. I'll fight you, when I think you're worth fighting. As it stands, the only person in your class that might give me a run for my money, aside from Hina-chan, is the Aburame guy." Naruko shrugged dismissively, "Until you're worth fighting, you're not even worth talking to. I'm not going to waste my time anymore. See ya." Naruko turned to Sakura and Suko, and offered them a small, polite bow. "Haruno-san, Jiken-san, I wish you well in your training, and wish you luck in dealing with Uchiha-san and his superiority complex." With Sasuke fuming, Sakura open mouthed in shock, and Suko grinning widely, Naruko calmly walked out of the building.

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><p>Naruko walked the streets of Konoha, bored out of her mind. Hinata's new sensei, one Kurenai Yuhi had forbidden Naruko from accompanying the Hyuuga to their team meetings. With Gai and his team away on a mission, this left Naruko with nothing to do but train. Something that she typically enjoyed, thing is, she usually had some company while she trained.<p>

So Naruko was bored out of her mind.

And _still_ forbidden from swearing and otherwise being a menace.

So with idle thoughts filling her head, Naruko was in no way prepared for when a hand clapped on her shoulder with far too much familiarity. Nobody she knew would approach her in such a manner, and she reacted accordingly.

She vanished.

When the hand clapped her shoulder once more, she nearly pissed herself. Someone had kept pace with the **Kōtai **. Only Gai, and occasionally Lee, could keep pace with the Step Backwards.

Naruko attempted a **Shinshutsu**, only for her ankle to buckle beneath her. She had forgotten she was wearing her weights. Attempting two foot techniques within such a short time whilst wearing her weights was impossible.

"Whoa whoa, calm your shit kid. I'm not an enemy."

A female voice, carrying a relaxed, if slightly sardonic tone.

"If you're not an enemy, you shouldn't approach from behind." She felt her ankles could manage another foot technique. This time would be **Ho-Okure**.

**Shinshutsu**, the Step Forward advanced on the target.

**Kōtai**, the Step Backwards moved away from the target.

**Ho-Okure**, the Step Behind avoided the gaze of the target, and maneuvered behind them, to allow for an attack.

Even Gai had trouble following Naruko's **Ho-Okure**. As far as Naruko was concerned, nobody was faster than Gai. Except maybe her, eventually.

A few milliseconds of fancy footwork and Naruko stood behind her assailant.

And then her assailant stood behind her.

"Wh-" She spun around, her fingers locked in a claw position, only to receive a strike in the solar plexus from a slim hand, locked in a snake position. She doubled up, gasping for air.

"Seriously kid, chill out. I'm not gonna hurt you if you don't try to hurt me. Not like you could."

"Wh-what the h-" Naruko stopped herself. Gai had taught her to value her promises, so she would do so, even when in difficult situations. "Wh-who are you?"

A pair of hands hauled Naruko to her feet, and she found herself staring at a pair of light brown eyes. "Anko Mitarashi! Pleased to meetcha! That was some nice footwork you've got there. Not a lick of chakra, right?"

Naruko's eyes were wide, "J-just a bit. Inside. Nothing major."

Anko rolled her eyes, "Nothing major, right. That's why you almost snapped your ankle."

"Y-you could tell?"

"That, and Gai told me."

"Wh-"

"ANYWAYS! You hungry? I'm hungry? Let's go get dango."

"D-dang-"

"Yes, you're quite right, it does sound delicious."

"Wh- I never said that!"

"You didn't? Oh well. Time for dango!"

Naruko was far too confused to resist as this woman in a brown coat and fishnets (and little else), dragged her down the street towards a dango resturant.

Twenty minutes later, and twice as many orders of dango, Naruko and Anko were deep in conversation. Which is to say that Anko prattled on nonstop, heedless of the food in her mouth, at such a speed that Naruko was unable to get a word in edgewise to ask just _why_ she was sitting at a restaurant with someone she knew nothing about.

Finally, Anko asked a question that Naruko could not hide from.

"So, you're one of the kids that Yurino fucked with. Shit, if we had known how fucked up she was-"

"Be _quiet!_" Naruko hissed through clenched teeth. "You don't know _anything!_"

Anko smiled, a small smile, full of understanding and acceptance.

Naruko wanted nothing more than to punch her smiling face in.

"Not ready to talk about it huh? Least not with someone you don't know."

Naruko was silent, her fingers splintering the table as she gripped it so tightly her knuckles were white.

"What about with people you do know? People you trust?"

Naruko's fingers smashed through the table.

"Guess not." Anko shrugged, "Let's change the subject. So, you're a taijutsu freak, like Gai right?"

Her head snapped to the side, she couldn't bear to look at the older woman, afraid that her temper would flare. "Tch. I take offense to the freak bit, but yeah, I guess."

"Wonderful!"

Naruko gasped as the woman grabbed her hand and began dragging her out of the restaurant, and through the streets once more.

"What are you _doing_?"

"We're gonna spaaaaaar!"

"Wh-"

Anko laughed, a bright, cheerful sound, that dragged Naruko ever closer to her inevitable doom.

"We could even start right now if you want! Don't worry about collateral damage kid, when it comes to me, Hokage has a fund set aside for any damages I cause!"

The blonde couldn't help but cringe at that, "So this is a regular occurrence then?"

"Sure! I get bored, some of the jonin are willing to play, but Gai asked me to keep you company, so I figure I might as well get you a good work out in the process!"

Naruko felt her lip curling up, in a devious grin. "And I can start at any time?"

"Sure!"

Naruko's fingers flexed into a claw position, and lashed out at Anko, who promptly used **kawarimi** to avoid the strike. The log exploded into splinters.

"Good lord, that would have killed me!" Despite her words, Anko sounded cheerful, "What's it called?"

"**Kyōatsu-sei**."

"Strong Iron Hand eh? That's a good name, intimidating. Who taught it to you?"

Naruko's feet blurred, almost imperceptibly, and she vanished.

Anko barely avoided the strike as the blonde reappeared scant inches in front of her.

The snakelike hand darted forward once more, twining around Naruko's arm, immobilizing that destructive hand as easily as if it was a civilian's arm. Fingers dug into the slim shoulders like a vice, crushing down on pressure points and sending spasms of pain coursing through her limb.

"Asked you a question brat." Anko's voice was still cheerful, as if she thought the pain she was inflicting on Naruko was nothing but a silly joke.

"N-no one! Me! Sh-Stop! F-Gah! Don't!"

"Don't what?"

"Hurts, Sh-please!"

Anko was incredibly confused, "What are you talking about?"

"FUCK! IT HURTS FUCKIN' LET GO OF ME YOU SHITTY FUCKIN' BITCH!"

Anko let go, and stepped back, her hands help up in submission, "Shit kid, I didn't think you were such a lightweight. W-whoa what happened? Shit what did I do? C'mon kid, stop bawling and talk to me!"

Naruko had fallen to her knees, and was in the middle of crying her eyes out.

"Y-you b-b-bitch!" Raw fury poured off of the blonde girl, and Anko could have sworn that the strands of red were growing more distinct, and the marks on her face were growing more defined, feral even. "I made a _promise_! And you...you..." The claw hand shot forward once more, tearing gouges in the stone wall Anko stood before moments before. A left hook, positively blazing with barely contained chakra missed Anko by several feet, but the force of it still slammed into her like a hurricane, knocking the wind out of her and sending her skipping down the street like a stone on a pond. The blonde girl's feet blurred once more, and suddenly Anko was looking up at a foot dropping out of the sky with the clear intent to smash her skull into gory shards. The special jonin rolled to the side, avoiding the straightforward ax kick, and looked on in awe at the aftermath. A furrow had been carved through the ground, as if a giant had taken a blade to the earth.

Then she saw Naruko's face. Steam, or smoke, coiled from the girl's open mouth, which was full of viciously sharp teeth, combined with her crimson eyes and facial markings that seeped blood, the girl had a positively hellish appearance.

Her left hand was curled into a fist, and blood flowed freely from numerous gashes along the arm and knuckles, with more opening with every breath the girl took. The limb was overloaded with chakra, and was suffering from it.

Her right hand was locked in the claw position, the nails torn away by the impact with the stone wall. Anko could feel no chakra from that limb, and was shocked that the strength that tore through stone like paper was all physical strength, with no chakra added in.

The girl's legs were trembling, almost blurring, and the wraps around her right foot were in tatters from the overwhelming strength of the ax kick.

But Anko felt no fear, only exultation, this girl was fascinating, and she would enjoy getting to know her.

Assuming that the two of them survived this.

As Anko rose and dropped into her taijutsu stance, she thought it likely that they would.

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><p>Anko and Naruko lay sprawled out on the grass of one of Konoha's many training grounds, both battered, bloody, and in terrible condition.<p>

"You...you calm now kid?"

Naruko grunted in affirmative.

"So what was the deal with that promise?"

Naruko chewed her lip, wincing as her still monstrous teeth tore into it, "I made a promise to Hina-chan that I wouldn't curse, or otherwise be a menace today."

"Pft, well, the cursing you could have hid, but you menaced the village pretty damn well, not much hiding that. And who's Hina-chan? Your girlfriend?"

Naruko blushed, though it was hard to tell beneath the blood that covered her face, "N-no. She's my cute junior, and I am her senpai. She's my oldest friend...the only person aside from Gai that I really trust."

"Hey, brat."

"Hm?"

"Add another person to that list, will ya?"

Naruko turned her head and looked at Anko, who was already looking at her, a mellow expression on her face. "Who?"

"Anko Mitarashi, that's who!"

Naruko looked back towards the sky, and smiled, "Sure. Why not. You had plenty of chances to kill me today...you held back. I know you did. So...yes. I trust you Anko-chan. Thank you. But now you need to brush my hair if Hina-chan won't do it. After all, you made me break my promise, you'd better take responsibility."

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><p>Predictably, Hinata had heard about Naruko's misadventure, and, while it was obvious to anyone watching that doing so caused her great distress, Hinata turned Naruko away, and told her that she needed to do it on her own that day.<p>

Reluctantly, Naruko made her way to Anko, and the cheerful jonin gladly "took responsibility," even _bathing_ Naruko, which while pleasant, was also rather unnerving, as the jonin had...for lack of a better term...wandering hands.

It was with the feeling of being both refreshed and violated that Naruko entered her apartment that night, and after a late dinner of ramen and fruit, she retired to her bed.

Or would have.

From her bed, a pair of golden eyes gleamed in the darkness.

Naruko flicked on the light and assessed the intruder.

It was a male, his hair was black, shoulder length, and tipped with the same shade of gold as his eyes. His face was marred by six marks, not unlike the marks on her own face.

Writhing on the bed behind him were five furred appendages, as black as the hair on his head, and tipped with gold.

Tails.

Five writhing, magnificent fox tails.

"Oh."

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><p>Author's Note:<p>

Surprise Kitsune!

Oh my sweet baby jesus, this chapter was looooooong. I didn't expect the bit with Anko to go on as much as it did.

I hope it wasn't boring?

I hope you enjoyed it!

I hope you were surprised at the end!

If anyone wants me to put a list of the techniques that Naruko has used thus far in the note at the end of next chapter, let me know!

Multiple-Choice time! Part one of the choices is to determine the intentions of Naruko's uninvited guest, and part two is to determine what Naruko will do about it!

**Part-One:**

A) The Kitsune is blunt, and his intentions are malevolent, he seeks to free the Kyuubi from its prison.

B) The Kitsune is neutral, and his intentions are ambivalent, he seeks knowledge of the Kyuubi, nothing more.

C) The Kitsune is polite, and his intentions are benevolent, he seeks to protect and serve the Kyuubi, and by extension, its jailer.

D) Mix and match options A, B, and C!

**Part-Two:**

A) Naruko keeps the Kitsune a secret, even from Hinata, Gai, and Anko

B) Naruko talks about the Kitsune to Hinata, Gai, or Anko, your choice!

C) Naruko attacks the Kitsune without learning of his intentions, after all, he is intruding in her home, and she's had a shitty day.

D) Mix and match options A, B, and C!


	6. Uninvited Guests

Author's Note: Oh my, writing is so much fun! I understand why my Maou does it.

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><p><strong>Ikuji<strong>

Uninvited Guests

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><p>"Oh."<p>

Naruko stared at the man sitting on her bed, with his black hair, dipped in gold, his eyes, like gold coins, gazing out at her impassively.

The five tails winding behind him, coiling through the air in hypnotic, sinuous patterns.

"Among my kind, I am called Seeker-Under-Moon. You are not my kind, so you may call me Trace."

He spoke in a voice without language, but Naruko could hear him as clearly as she could hear anyone else.

"Trace." Even as she said it, she knew she was speaking in the same voice without language that the man before her did, and her body rebelled against it. Such words had no place coming from the mouth of a human.

A narrow hand rested atop her head, and the pressure inside her eased. "Be careful how you speak to my kind, She-Who-Dances, for our words will kill your kind, if spoken improperly."

"She-Who-Dances?" Naruko doubled up as the pressure returned behind her eyes, and spots of black flew across her vision. Again the narrow hand patted her head, and the pressure faded.

"It is what my kind calls you, for you are special among my kind, thus you are given a name among my kind. She-Who-Dances. Tell me, what do you know of He-Who-Is-Victorious? You know him as the Sage of Six Paths?" The golden eyes were even with hers, boring into her soul.

As she gazed into their gilded depths, she felt compelled to answer. "N-not much really. He invented ninjutsu, discovered chakra. First modern shinobi. Gai doesn't focus on that much, since taijutsu existed long before the Sage."

The man 'hmm-ed' thoughtfully, and the sound resonated through the room, sending shudders down Naruko's spine. "Your knowledge, while correct, is so shallow, so very limited."

The man stood to his full height, an impressive thing, close to seven feet, by Naruko's reckoning, made all the more impressive by his slender, willowy limbs. The man before here was a creature of utmost grace.

She imagined that watching him dance would be no less beautiful than watching him kill her.

"Allow me to educate you, She-Who-Dances, in the history of this world that you call your home." He waved his hand, and Naruko watched in awe as the world fell away around her, leaving her floating in a darkness so absolute that it was a physical thing.

"Once, long ago, there was a single demon. It was known as the Jubi, the Ten-Tails, the Beast, the End, the Reaver. My kind call it That-Which-Came-Before. It was a primordial thing, as old as the gods, as great as the heart of the world, and its antithesis." From the darkness around them formed a figure so dark, so vast, so immense, that it made the void from which it was formed seem light by comparison.

"Where it walked, there was only destruction, your kind, young and weak and fearful, revered it as a god, and in a way, they were right. One day, a sacrifice came before it, but he would not fall. He rebelled against the terrible power it held, and cast it down. For many generations, it lay in wait."

Naruko watched as the battle unfolded, a man dressed in little more than rags defied the Darkness, and with outstretched hands, took hold of it and cast it into a crevice in the ground.

When she spoke, her voice was hardly a whisper, "And that was the Sage?"

Trace shook his head, "That was his father. The Sage came later, and built upon the things his father had discovered, and then, when the Sage was at the height of his power, the Jubi chose to return, and like his father before him, the Sage challenged the Beast. And like his father before him, the Sage cast it down. Unlike his father, the Sage was not content to defeat the Beast, he wished to destroy it utterly. Thus, he cast his voice into the Abyss, and begged a favor of That-Which-Takes, of Death itself. While the Lord of Death agreed to do as the Sage asked, he would take the Sage's life in return."

Naruko looked away from the unfolding battle and at the storyteller, who seemed as enthralled in the telling as she was in listening, "What did the Sage ask?" Again, Naruko felt the pressure of the voiceless language in her skull, but this time it was lessened. Perhaps she was getting used to it.

Trace looked at her, his gold eyes twinkling, "He asked That-Which-Takes, to _give_. To give the power of the Jubi to him, to bind it in his body, to die with him when the Lord of Death took his due. However...the Jubi was too great for even Death to fully contain, and a single, small fraction of the Beast's power was not sealed, and, his task not completed, Death could not take his due."

Naruko watched as the Jubi was sealed into the Sage, only for Death to back away at the last moment and vanish, a look of anguish and fury upon its otherworldly face.

"So, the Sage, with the majority of the Jubi's immense power at his disposal, took the remains of the Jubi's body, and the remaining fragments of its chakra, and cast them into the sky. Thus the moon was born."

Naruko watched in awe as the monstrous body of the Jubi was encased in stone and launched high into the heavens.

"The Sage thought that it was done then. He was wrong. The Jubi's power lived on, and in the light of the moon, its power rained across the world for generations. Over time, it gave rise to...changes. What your people call Kekkei Genkai. Some were born of the bloodline of the Sage's father, given form and coaxed into life by the empowered moonlight, others were spontaneous, formed purely of the remnants Jubi's power falling from the heavens."

Images flashed before Naruko, bodies contorting, ragged spines bursting forth from their limbs, strange energies emerging from their bodies.

Crimson eyes.

"Of course, to think that only humans were affected by the power of the Jubi is foolish. All living things felt the touch of that darkness, from the most lowly insect to the most majestic tree. So over time, those things too began to change. They gained minds, true sentience, and the ability to usse chakra, much like humans."

A frog – or a toad – stood upon its hind legs, and sprayed flaming liquid from its mouth. A fox changed into a beautiful woman. A titanic oak tree warped and twisted before disgorging a child with hair of moss and skin of bark.

"Some allied themselves with humans, and remain thus allied to this day; they became the Summons."

The frog – or a toad, stood before a human and unfurled a long scroll, and beckoned the human to sign it.

"Some remained separate. Preferring to to be the masters of their own fate. Your kind came to call those Demons."

The fox-woman approached a man, her hips swaying. The man reached out, only for his body to turn to dust as the fox-woman drained the life from him.

"Yet others remained...unknowable. Your kind called these Spirits. Neither good and helpful like the Summons, nor foul and malevolent like the Demons."

The Oak-Child led a human through the woods, laughing mischeviously.

"For a time, all manner of beings lived in harmony, until, in the latter years of the Sage's life, his two beloved children came into conflict. The lover of peace and harmony that he was, the Sage chose his younger child as his successor, for they held the same values, much to the displeasure of the elder."

Naruko watched the conflict unfold before her, and the elder eventually fled into parts unknown, leaving a heartbroken Sage and a melancholy sibling.

"Some time after that, the Sage lay on his deathbed. Concerned that when he died, that Death's binding would fail, he drew the Jubi's essence out from within himself, and divided it into nine parts. Much to the shock of all, he shaped them, not as Summons, not as Spirits, not even as humans, but as Demons, and entrusted care of them to the nine clans of Greater Demons."

Naruko watched as a dark mass of energy emerged from the Sage and divided into nine parts. A Tankuki, a Cat, a Turtle, an Monkey, a Dolphin-Horse, a Slug, a Beetle, an Octopus-Ox, and finally, a Fox.

"But how were the Demon Clans to control something that was birthed from the primordial evil? How, when each night, when the moon shone in the sky, the remnants of the Jubi whispered darkness into their minds? They could not. And eventually they were released, to do as they would. Once they were free however...they were found to not be mad, or malevolent. They simply wished for freedom."

Naruko watched as the nine beasts roamed the world, doing nothing more than indulging their curiosity, for they were still young.

"Many though, came into conflict with your kind, and were captured, sealed, like the Jubi before them."

Naruko saw as these magnificent creatures, these titanic beings of majesty and power were crushed down into the bodies of humans, and forced to give their power.

Slowly, Naruko's room came back into focus, and she found that Trace was once more sitting on her bed.

"This brings me to why I have brought myself before you today. The Kyuubi no Kitsune, he is the greatest among the Kitsune Clan, and while he is not our Lady, we still owe him our loyalty. I am here before you to inquire as to his well being."

Naruko blinked, and looked down at the ground. "He's dead, didn't you know? The Yondaime Hokage killed it."

Trace blinked. For the first time, Naruko saw bare emotions upon the man's face. "Do you...I see." The man rose, his tails writhing frantically behind him. "The Kyuubi is not dead, Naruko Uzumaki, he was contained, like the Jubi before him, like all the other Biju before him. He was contained, into you, Naruko Uzumaki."

Naruko fell back, slumping against the wall, "That...that's..."

The man loomed over her, and she saw why Kitsune were called Demons. He was terrifying. "It is an _honor_. You are special among my kind by virtue of carrying One-That-Rules within you. I have come to inquire as to his well being."

The Kitsune, for Naruko could no longer think of him as simply a man, grinned widely, revealing a mouth full of sharp teeth, his golden eyes slit and luminous.

"I have come to free him from you, if at all possible."

* * *

><p>Author's Note: Wow! Ok, shorter than chapter five, but still, I think this was a good chapter. I think Trace has firmly cemented himself as Mr. Exposition.<p>

On the note of that bit of exposition, what do you all think of my version of the Sage-Jubi story?

If you need any clarification, please, don't hesitate to ask! I'll respond via PM!


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